The bunyip projectwas developed by the Tasmanian School Education Division. Although the project is no longer operating, the idea is the basis for this technology enhanced learning project. In this case the focus group is Grade 1 (5-6 years old).
The Nucleus of the Idea
Two groups of children, geographically separated, each create half of a bunyip (or other imaginary creature) selecting from a variety of materials made available. One group creates the top half and the second group creates the bottom half. The children then create instructions about how to construct their section of the creature and make these instructions available to the other group using digital communication technology. This could be by email or using a wiki or online forum. An online conversation is developed in order to clarify the instructions until each group is able to construct the half which was designed by the other group. Both groups then have a complete bunyip and the two creatures should look the same! Digital photos are swapped and comparisons made between the two creations.
photo from the Bunyip Project
Pedagogical Considerations
Effective pedagogy must be considered in the planning stages in order to ensure optimal student learning. The Five Standards for Effective Pedagogy developed by the CREDE project at the University of California, Berkeley can be used as a foundation for pedagogical decisions. • Teachers and Students Working Together
This is a collaborative project in which students and teacher are both involved with the overall goal of effective communication in order to complete the bunyip. The process and the final outcome has an open-ended character and there is the opportunity for student direction. However if the project is developed as a whole class activity it has the potential to become teacher directed. During planning and implementation, opportunities for children to work in small groups, directing their own learning, supported by an adult must be engineered. A section of the body could be made by each group (body, head, front legs) or a number of different creatures could be constructed. • Developing Language and Literacy Skills across all Curriculum
The small group context provides the opportunity for all children to be involved in talking about their creature. Language of description, explanation, organisation, collaboration and decision making will be practised. A specific literacy focus is the instructional genre and some familiarity with the genre would be needed beforehand. The literacy skills are used within an authentic context. Students receive feedback from the other group, encouraging them to reflect on their text and the concept of editing to improve the effectiveness of the communication is introduced. The use of word processed or recorded text makes editing easier than for handwritten text. Sequencing skills and developing language competence in communicating sequence are also involved. The children are also developing literacy in digital communication. • Connecting Lessons to Students' Lives
Imaginary and mythical creatures are familiar to children of this age in everyday life through books, fairy tales, movies, toys and digital games. This project connects with their fertile imaginations and in some cases may help children to deal with fears about monsters. Links to this prior knowledge would be activated at the beginning of the project in the form of stories, pictures, songs. The use of interactive whiteboards for whole class internet research and image presentation, or talking books for example, would be appropriate incorporation of technology at this stage. The creation of a wiki allows family and friends to also access the project and enables the children to share their work with a wider audience. • Engaging Students with Challenging Lessons
The task of instructing another person to make the creature would be a challenge even for an adult! However it is a challenge that can be addressed on many levels. The other group will be able to make something despite the amount of detail and accuracy in the instructions received but there is an inbuilt challenge to make the instructions more accurate. Motivation is provided by creating their own creature, in communicating with another group of children and in using the technologies. There is also the challenge of working together harmoniously and effectively in a small group situation. The amount of support or scaffolding the group receives can be varied depending on the ability of the children involved, providing differentiation. More able groups can be encouraged to make a more complicated creature, hence creating a more challenging task for the instructions. Consideration must be given to differentiation when deciding on the make up of the groups. • Emphasizing Dialogue over Lectures
Ideally one adult for every two groups would be available for interactive support so that large amounts of teacher-student dialogue occurs. The attitude and behaviour of this adult is extremely important. "Instructional conversations" may help children to clarify their thinking and problem solve. They may highlight and model cooperative group language and behaviour. They may introduce appropriate language structures. The teacher must make on-the-spot decisions as to the appropriate interventions to position the students in Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (Rivera, 2002). They will also be instrumental in helping the children to understand the overall process and the role of technology in the project.
Developmentally Appropriate Considerations
As children of this age are still egotistical and have limited group cooperation skills, the size of the groups should be kept small (3 or 4 students) and support needs to be given to help them learn how to work together and improve group cooperation skills. Strict time constraints should also be avoided to give the children time to construct their own understandings.
Using Technology for Support
Technologies can be used to support the children within the process of creating their instructions, making the tasks more developmentally appropriate. In order to help the children remember what they have done, they can take a digital photograph of each step of the construction while they are making their creature. These photos can then be made into a book with one step per page. Sequencing the photos into the book reinforces understanding of sequence and the memory of the construction process. Adults can act as scribes to add a simple instruction, composed by the students, to each page. The children can then read and discuss their book until they are confident of the order and how to explain and phrase their instructions. As the process of typing text is extremely difficult and time consuming for children of this age, communication can be facilitated by using audio recording of instructions. An audio file could be used as the communication or a transcript could be typed by an adult. Real time verbal communication using Skype might also be appropriate. An interactive whiteboard could be used to share group contributions with the rest of the class and to do collaborative editing.
Use of Technology in the Project
Technology is integral to the project, enhancing and supporting student learning in almost every aspect. The following forms of technology are used: Communication technologies - email, wiki or online forum, Skype Digital photography and printing
Digital recording Word processing Interactive whiteboard (or datashow)
Talking books
Student Standards
The International Society for Technology in Education has formulated the National Education Technology Standards for Students
This project develops skills and understanding in the following three areas outlined in the Standards:
Communication and Collaboration a. interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.
b. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.
c. develop cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with learners of other cultures.
d. contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems. Critical thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making b. plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project.
d. use multiple processes and diverse perspectives to explore alternative solutions. Technology Operations and Concepts a. understand and use technology systems.
b. select and use applications effectively and productively.
d. transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies.
Rivera, H., Galarza, S. L., Entz, S. & Tharp, R. G. 2002, 'Technology and Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education: Guidance from Cultural-Historical-Activity Theory and Developmentally Appropriate Instruction', Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual, vol. 2002, no. 1, pp. 181-204.
Creating Creatures and Communicating
The bunyip projectwas developed by the Tasmanian School Education Division. Although the project is no longer operating, the idea is the basis for this technology enhanced learning project. In this case the focus group is Grade 1 (5-6 years old).
The Nucleus of the Idea
Two groups of children, geographically separated, each create half of a bunyip (or other imaginary creature) selecting from a variety of materials made available. One group creates the top half and the second group creates the bottom half. The children then create instructions about how to construct their section of the creature and make these instructions available to the other group using digital communication technology. This could be by email or using a wiki or online forum. An online conversation is developed in order to clarify the instructions until each group is able to construct the half which was designed by the other group. Both groups then have a complete bunyip and the two creatures should look the same! Digital photos are swapped and comparisons made between the two creations.
Pedagogical Considerations
Effective pedagogy must be considered in the planning stages in order to ensure optimal student learning. The Five Standards for Effective Pedagogy developed by the CREDE project at the University of California, Berkeley can be used as a foundation for pedagogical decisions.• Teachers and Students Working Together
This is a collaborative project in which students and teacher are both involved with the overall goal of effective communication in order to complete the bunyip. The process and the final outcome has an open-ended character and there is the opportunity for student direction. However if the project is developed as a whole class activity it has the potential to become teacher directed. During planning and implementation, opportunities for children to work in small groups, directing their own learning, supported by an adult must be engineered. A section of the body could be made by each group (body, head, front legs) or a number of different creatures could be constructed.
• Developing Language and Literacy Skills across all Curriculum
The small group context provides the opportunity for all children to be involved in talking about their creature. Language of description, explanation, organisation, collaboration and decision making will be practised. A specific literacy focus is the instructional genre and some familiarity with the genre would be needed beforehand. The literacy skills are used within an authentic context. Students receive feedback from the other group, encouraging them to reflect on their text and the concept of editing to improve the effectiveness of the communication is introduced. The use of word processed or recorded text makes editing easier than for handwritten text. Sequencing skills and developing language competence in communicating sequence are also involved. The children are also developing literacy in digital communication.
• Connecting Lessons to Students' Lives
Imaginary and mythical creatures are familiar to children of this age in everyday life through books, fairy tales, movies, toys and digital games. This project connects with their fertile imaginations and in some cases may help children to deal with fears about monsters. Links to this prior knowledge would be activated at the beginning of the project in the form of stories, pictures, songs. The use of interactive whiteboards for whole class internet research and image presentation, or talking books for example, would be appropriate incorporation of technology at this stage. The creation of a wiki allows family and friends to also access the project and enables the children to share their work with a wider audience.
• Engaging Students with Challenging Lessons
The task of instructing another person to make the creature would be a challenge even for an adult! However it is a challenge that can be addressed on many levels. The other group will be able to make something despite the amount of detail and accuracy in the instructions received but there is an inbuilt challenge to make the instructions more accurate. Motivation is provided by creating their own creature, in communicating with another group of children and in using the technologies. There is also the challenge of working together harmoniously and effectively in a small group situation. The amount of support or scaffolding the group receives can be varied depending on the ability of the children involved, providing differentiation. More able groups can be encouraged to make a more complicated creature, hence creating a more challenging task for the instructions. Consideration must be given to differentiation when deciding on the make up of the groups.
• Emphasizing Dialogue over Lectures
Ideally one adult for every two groups would be available for interactive support so that large amounts of teacher-student dialogue occurs. The attitude and behaviour of this adult is extremely important. "Instructional conversations" may help children to clarify their thinking and problem solve. They may highlight and model cooperative group language and behaviour. They may introduce appropriate language structures. The teacher must make on-the-spot decisions as to the appropriate interventions to position the students in Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (Rivera, 2002). They will also be instrumental in helping the children to understand the overall process and the role of technology in the project.
Developmentally Appropriate Considerations
As children of this age are still egotistical and have limited group cooperation skills, the size of the groups should be kept small (3 or 4 students) and support needs to be given to help them learn how to work together and improve group cooperation skills. Strict time constraints should also be avoided to give the children time to construct their own understandings.
Using Technology for Support
Technologies can be used to support the children within the process of creating their instructions, making the tasks more developmentally appropriate. In order to help the children remember what they have done, they can take a digital photograph of each step of the construction while they are making their creature. These photos can then be made into a book with one step per page. Sequencing the photos into the book reinforces understanding of sequence and the memory of the construction process. Adults can act as scribes to add a simple instruction, composed by the students, to each page. The children can then read and discuss their book until they are confident of the order and how to explain and phrase their instructions. As the process of typing text is extremely difficult and time consuming for children of this age, communication can be facilitated by using audio recording of instructions. An audio file could be used as the communication or a transcript could be typed by an adult. Real time verbal communication using Skype might also be appropriate. An interactive whiteboard could be used to share group contributions with the rest of the class and to do collaborative editing.
Use of Technology in the Project
Technology is integral to the project, enhancing and supporting student learning in almost every aspect. The following forms of technology are used:Communication technologies - email, wiki or online forum, Skype
Digital photography and printing
Digital recording
Word processing
Interactive whiteboard (or datashow)
Talking books
Student Standards
The International Society for Technology in Education has formulated the National Education Technology Standards for StudentsThis project develops skills and understanding in the following three areas outlined in the Standards:
Communication and Collaboration
a. interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.
b. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.
c. develop cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with learners of other cultures.
d. contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems.
Critical thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making
b. plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project.
d. use multiple processes and diverse perspectives to explore alternative solutions.
Technology Operations and Concepts
a. understand and use technology systems.
b. select and use applications effectively and productively.
d. transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies.
References
Center for Research on Education Diversity and Excellence (CREDE) 2002, 'The Five Standards for Effective Pedagogy', <http://crede.berkeley.edu/standards/standards.html> (6th May, 2008)International Society for Technology in Education 2007, 'NETS for Students 2007', <http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForStudents/2007Standards/NETS_for_Students_2007.htm> (8 May, 2008)
Rivera, H., Galarza, S. L., Entz, S. & Tharp, R. G. 2002, 'Technology and Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education: Guidance from Cultural-Historical-Activity Theory and Developmentally Appropriate Instruction', Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual, vol. 2002, no. 1, pp. 181-204.